Trump is right to cut funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency

President Donald Trump

"Founded in 1949 to carry out direct relief and works programs for Palestinian refugees from
Israel's War of Independence, UNRWA long ago outlived its charge. When it was established, there were as many as 750,000 refugees. Today, UNRWA considers more than 5 million people to be refugees from that conflict and provides education, health care, social programs, loans and more to people in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan and Syria...

U.S. law...recognizes as refugees only those displaced and their minor children who have not obtained a new nationality and are not 'home.' This is a conceptual change: 'Yes to assistance, no to classification as refugees.' The result would leave only about 20,000 legitimate Palestinian refugees.

Helping refugees is a noble charge, but UNRWA isn't actually helping people. It's perpetuating a conflict the Palestinians lost long ago and aiding Arab governments who refuse to provide for the basic needs of their people...

President Trump came into office making big promises about solving the Arab-Israeli conflict and reforming the United Nations. His announcement on Jerusalem dealt a serious blow to the Palestinian rejectionism that has prolonged this conflict for generations. Finding a way to end UNRWA's support for the structures behind the unwillingness of Palestinians to make peace would be another important step. Freezing payments is a step in the right direction."

Date

January 7, 2018

Title

Trump is right to cut funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, The Hill